A/N: I hate ending stories... BUT every good thing must come to an end.

A special thank you to those of you who have stuck it out to the end, even threw the 2 or so years I was gone! You guys are awesome :3

To be honest, I wanted to do a little more with this, but I think you all have waited long enough, and I'm happy enough with this. I hope you enjoy this final installment! :3

Epilogue

Home

The feeling was completely surreal. When they had pulled up and left suddenly so many months ago, Houtarou had been under no impression that he would ever return here, yet here he stood, staring blankly at his old room. He let out a sigh, dropping his luggage to the floor with a clunk, before falling spread eagle onto his bed. It felt so good to be back…

Granted, he knew it wasn't over yet. Despite being caught red-handed, Kurosawa would still go before the court on multiple charges, and Houtarou would still have to testify against him.

Not that he cared, really.

His father was a criminal and deserved whatever sentence he had coming.

It still bothered him, though. Even after everything he had just been through, the idea of his father behind bars bothered him for a reason not even he understood.

But he would make himself believe that his father deserved it if it was the last thing he ever did. It was the only way he would be able to move on.

A knock sounded on his open door, and he lifted his head from the bed to see his cousin in the doorway, a sly smile on her face.

"Are you going to spend all day up here, little brother, or are you going to come down and greet your guests?"

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Guests? What guests?"

"Well, now, who do you think would come to visit a sloth like you?"

"You've been talking to Mayaka too much, haven't you?" he asked with a frown.

She simply shrugged and turned to head back down. "Are you coming or not?"

He rolled off the bed and followed her out the door. "By the way, is it really appropriate for you to call me 'little brother' still?"

"Oh? I didn't think you'd even noticed, but why not? If it makes you uncomfortable, you don't have to call me 'aneki' anymore, but as far as I'm concerned, you are my little brother."

Houtarou was momentarily stunned speechless, but it didn't last long when he turned the corner into the living room and spied three familiar faces.

"Well, it's about time, Oreki. It's rude to keep guests waiting."

"Yo, Houtarou!"

"It's good to see you back, Oreki-san."

For the first time in what felt like years, Houtarou smiled. "Yo. It's good to be back."

The following week brought school and normalcy. For Houtarou, it felt as if he had never left the place. While school itself wasn't necessarily welcomed in and of itself, the peaceful club room after classes had ended was. He wasn't sure if it was a fortunate occurrence at first when, on the second day back, he was left alone with just Chitanda Eru.

"Gomen! With everything last week, I'm a little behind getting stuff together in the Student Council!"

"I blame you, Oreki! Because you went running off, I've got extra to do in the Manga Society to make up for my absence!"

After the pair had disappeared, the room was silent. Houtarou never minded, but it took only a few moments for him to realize something was off. Snapping his book shut, he sighed, instantly catching her attention. "All right, Chitanda. What's bothering you this time?"

Eru continued to fidget in her seat for a few moments, mumbling. "Ano….sono…."

"Out with it already."

Before he could comprehend her reluctance, she was out of her seat and bowing low. "I never got the chance to apologize, Oreki-san, for my rudeness! When we were trying to stop you from leaving, I inadvertently used your first name. Please excuse my rudeness."

"Uh...ah, of course…" He had completely forgotten the incident in he bus station in the commotion that had followed. But now he clearly remembered.

Thoroughly relieved, Eru straightened up and returned to her chair. "Arigatou, Oreki-san. I feel much better now."

He turned back to his book, but couldn't focus on the words. He couldn't stop thinking about that moment now that she had brought it up.

"You know," he started after another moment, "I didn't really mind. If you'd like, you can use it all the time."

"Eh?"

He glanced up to see her staring at him, eyes wide, lips slightly parted in surprise.

"May I really?"

Houtarou nodded, eyes still locked with hers.

And then she smiled. "Houtarou-kun, then." She paused. "Then, please call my Eru as well."

"Eh?" He sat up a little straighter in his chair. That was the last thing he had expected to hear but… he smiled as well, and at the same time felt heat rise to his cheeks. "Eru...san?"

Eru giggled. "Whatever you prefer, Houtarou-kun."

As the day of the trial slowly approached, three of the members of the Kotenbu could clearly see the growing tension in their fourth member. If he had been cold towards most normally, he became completely unapproachable as the day drew nearer. In the end, by a vote, the three decided it was Satoshi's job to talk to him.

"Houtarou."

"What?"

"Can we talk?"

Houtarou raised an eyebrow. "I guess? What about?"

"You've...been more irritable than normal lately. We're just worried." He paused. "It's about the trial, isn't it?"

Houtarou stared in slight surprise at his friend for a long moment before he found his voice. "Sorry for worrying you all. I guess I am a little on edge."

"Do you wanna talk about it?"

"Not really. Look, I just really don't want to have to see him again. That's all."

"After everything he did to you, I think you're pretty justified in feeling that way."

"I know but…" He sighed, chewing his bottom lip.

"There's something else."

He nodded. "Despite everything that's happened, I guess I'm just still wishing it could have worked out. That's all."

"Hmm." Satoshi nodded. "I think that's probably pretty normal. I mean, he's still your dad after all. It's gonna be a rough day, the day of the trial."

Houtarou nodded. "Yeah, yeah, it definitely will be."

"It'll be okay, you'll see. After the trial, you can put all this behind you and go home with your real family."

The day of the trial came and went without further incident, and life seemed to resume as normal. The days passed in an uneventful manner, and the four friends found themselves celebrating the new year together at one of the local shrines, just like they had the year before, minus getting locked in a shed of course.

"You know we're never going to let you live that down, right, Oreki?" Mayaka chortled.

"Hmph."

"Oh, come on, Houtarou; you have to admit that it is a little bit funny," Satoshi chuckled.

"Not when Ibara has been talking about it since New Year's," Houtarou stated. "That was a week ago now…"

"Well, you might have a point with that, I suppose."

"Nope. It'll never not be funny."

Just then the club room door slammed open, and the club's fourth member flew threw the door at full speed, heading straight for where Houtarou sat. Grabbing his arm, she pulled him half out of his chair before anyone in the room quite understood what was happening.

"Houtarou-kun! Kininarimasu!"

Her eyes locked with his, and he knew he was trapped. Something had grabbed her attention, and she would not let up until he had a solution to settle her mind. As she turned to continue dragging him from the room, he whispered to Satoshi as he passed, "I think I might have to come up with a new motto…"

As he followed Eru out of the classroom and down the hall, Houtarou couldn't help but smile.

~Moving Forward~